Previews

Transformers: The Game

Spiffy:

Separate Autobot and Decepticon campaigns; detailed robot models.

Iffy:

Combat and racing elements are fairly bare-bones.

There are two schools of thought regarding the upcoming "Transformers" movie. One held by the more optimistic half of the populace is that the film will amaze with great special effects and will help rekindle a global love affair with those remarkable robots in disguise. (The film will, after all, bring back Peter Cullen as the voice of Optimus Prime.) The other half, those who look at the glass as half-empty, feel that Michael Bay is defacing treasured childhood memories by converting beloved transformers into walking, talking car advertisements. For example, Jazz has changed from a Porsche 935 Turbo to a Pontiac Solstice., and even Optimus Prime's classic red and blue livery has been replaced by a more ostentatious flaming motif.

Regardless of how the film turns out, and setting aside any accusations of heresy by those who can't step out of the past, the Transformers property stands to make a big impact this summer, and Activision is rolling out a series of video games based on the film for every game system known to man. Traveller's Tales, developers of the Lego Star Wars games, has spent the last 20 months working on the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2 and PC versions of Transformers: The Game. We recently had the chance to check out the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions at an Activision preview event, and aside from basic differences inherent to their respective platforms, the games seem interchangeable.

Robots in Disguise

While it may seem like a straightforward process, there was apparently a lot of market research dedicated to deciding the proper approach to take with Transformers games based on the upcoming film. Activision Executive producer Daniel Suarez told us that the line between fans of the Autobots and Decepticons is split right down the middle. Some fans have the Autobot logo tattooed on their biceps, while it's hard to drive around town without seeing a Decepticon decal on a car or two. So to keep fans on both sides of the fence happy, these Transformers games will feature dual campaigns, allowing you to play through an adaptation (and expansion) of the film's storyline as both the Autobots and the Decepticons. It's up to you whether you choose to "protect" or "destroy" the Earth. Finally, a game that can appeal to sociopaths and do-gooders alike!

The first aspect of the game highlighted for us during the preview event were the highly detailed Transformers themselves. The Industrial Light and Magic character models used in the film were given to the development team for use in the game, and when you get up close and inspect the intricacies of each character, it shows. Every minute detail is captured in these models, which appear to be made of hundreds of interlocking parts. Why idling robots needs lifelike breathing animations I'll never understand, but they have them. These Transformers are quite a departure from the characters you may have grown up watching, so knowing that some fans may not want to get with the times, the games will also include Generation 1 versions of some of your favorites, including a suitably blocky and completely retro-looking version of Optimus. There will be nine playable characters in total, with four Autobots (Optimus, Bumblebee, Ironhide, and Jazz) as well as five Decepticons, including Megatron, Starscream and fan-favorite Shockwave.